Today, directors Zack Embree and Devyn Brugge have landed in Ottawa to begin the final screening leg of the #DirectlyAffected film tour, beginning with tomorrow night's (May 22, 2018) sold out screening on Parliament Hill, sponsored by Members of Parliament Kennedy Stewart and Finn Donnelley, then followed up by Toronto on Wednesday night (with an incredibly stellar panel discussion to follow -- tickets still available), all to coincide with the official release of the film on VimeoOnDemand and on our website!

Ontario screenings mark first screenings in Eastern Canada

That's right! Not only will we be releasing the film to rent for $5.99 CDN beginning Wednesday night at 6 PM EST, we've taken it straight to Ottawa, so that Parliamentarians of all stripes can hear the voices of scientists, citizens, First Nations, economists and mayors featured in Pipeline Under Pressure, a new film about everything you need to know about the Kinder Morgan pipeline fight.

Then, on Wednesday, May 23rd, we'll be in Toronto at the Innis Town Hall (a HotDocs venue) with a stacked panel: Director Zack Embree, Managing Editor of the National Observer Mike De Souza (notable for his incredible reporting on the NEB/Trans Mountain file, including breaking recent revelations that government staff believed the pipeline project was pre-approved), Independent economist and expert intervenor of the National Energy Board Trans Mountain hearing process, Robyn Allan (she has done more to dispell the myth of Trans Mountain's stated economic benefits perhaps more than anyone), and Environmental Defence's Climate and Energy Manage Patrick DaRochia (a heavy hitter, to be sure).

Pre-order the film before Wednesday and save

Simultaneously, we will be launching Directly Affected: Pipeline Under Pressure live from within the Toronto screening -- those who cannot attend, can watch the movie that night or rent it this weekend!

Also, you can Pre-order the film right now and save! Use the discount code here to get the film for a little cheaper (40%) off before it launches and watch it when it's available. You won't be charged until Wednesday night.

Finally, we wish to thank the countless people involved who have made these events -- and all our 2018 screening events -- a truly massive success. With over 20 screenings so far, and many that sold out, we know the time to see Directly Affected is now. What are you waiting for?

What would happen if people's voices were heard?

That's the question we asked over a year ago when we started making Directly Affected. Now, we're going to keep telling that story—your story—as we connect the people and places impacted by Kinder Morgan's Trans Mountain pipeline and TransCanada's Energy East pipeline.

The Directly Affected team is travelling across Canada this June and July (2015) to continue capturing stories of those directly affected by proposed tar sands pipelines right here in BC and across Canada. We'll be posting updates and blogs about the journey here on our website and on the IndieGoGo campaign.

As public participation in the Kinder Morgan review is restricted, we provide a means to connect the disparate voices of individuals and communities not being heard by decision makers. Our film is curious about what connects us, despite differences in place, space and time. It's about understanding what we truly value in our lives, on our coast and in our country. Our narrative will weave the diversity of human connections with the place itself.

That's the question on many people's minds in Canada. It has to do with irresponsible governance, a failure to act as a steward of important resources, a denial of scientific fact and the mega-pipeline projects that are giving way to one of the world's most dangerous carbon bombs.

But Directly Affected is a story that is bigger than pipelines (at the core of it, it's actually not really a story about pipelines).

Most simply, if you breathe air, drink water, or pay taxes — this story is for you. It's about you.

And the ending to this story will either be dystopian — or it will be tremendous, beautiful and hopeful.

It very well could be the story of Canada finally stepping up and into a clean energy future, and a far more equitable society.

In two days, we begin the next step in making Directly Affected. We're travelling coast-to-coast seeking to capture powerful stories of innovation, activism and resilience and we're engaging communities in deeper conversations by screening our current cut of the film.

We won't be back until the end of July: and then we're cutting a whole new version of the original short film that you can screen. Sound good? Read on.

Directly Affected began with the need of a community to have their voices amplified. Last Summer, we received $10,000 from the vote-to-fund platform Telus STORYHIVE and travelled along the route of the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain pipeline to give voice back to individuals and communities not being heard by an onerous review process and decision makers in Ottawa.

Now, we're on a similar journey. Except this time, we're travelling the route of the proposed Energy East pipeline to turn our film into a national story and we're giving it back to communities to screen on September 22, 2015.

And, oh yeah, we're also producing a web series along the way called #WhereWeLive.

Where We Live opening title card.

If we can raise our funding goal of $24,000, then we can finish Directly Affected. If we don't, you won't get the perks on the campaign (like a Directly Affected Tee printed by Fairware!), and we might not be able to finish the film before Canada's next election.

Unfortunately, our goal just isn't enough for us to do everything that we know we must do in order to heal the political divide around Canada's tar sands (for this, we need everyone). That's what we're aiming for, because media is important in affecting our behaviour. And, media making is expensive, as well as travel. It takes a lot of time to tell a complete story, and to pull on your heart strings (we do that because we have the truth on our side, unlike advertising campaigns by big oil companies and Canada's federal government).

Luckily, we've been supported by Lush Cosmetics and Patagonia to get where we are today with the project. But we've also planned a couple of great stretch goals that will create huge impact:

If we reach $30,000, the film gets even better with translations and captions (in multiple languages), a composer, and animated segments.

With $40,000, we can put our research into an educational component that accompanies the film: a booklet, articles and fact sheet. Plus, we'll be able to market and distribute Directly Affected in film festivals, pay for online advertising, and get it into schools.

At the $50,000 mark, we'll be able to do something we've been dreaming of for a long time: a fully interactive web platform that is content-rich and connects many communities and regional issues across Canada. This will be a game-changer for audiences viewing the film.

For another 10k, we can produce #WhereWeLive content throughout the fall, visit more places in the Pacific Northwest directly affected, and tell more stories. We'll also be able to drop three "mind bombs" on the internet (animated micro-video content) that will seriously have an impact leading up to the National Energy Board decision on Kinder Morgan's Trans Mountain Pipeline in January.

Finally, for $75,000, we'll begin research and development on the feature film concept that will take us across the world to discover what Canada must to do build a better, more resilient economy.

That's why we need your help. It started with people seeking a way to amplify their voice. Now, we need you to help us continue to tell the story of what exactly those individuals and communities were speaking about—a liveable future—and that which puts it all risk.

Please, contribute to the campaign and tell others why you've supported media making that matters.

The Directly Affected team is travelling across Canada with Raincoast Conservation Foundation this June and July to continue capturing stories of those directly affected by proposed tar sands pipelines right here in BC and across Canada. We'll be posting updates and blogs about the journey here on our website and on the IndieGoGo campaign.

What would happen if people's voices were heard?

That's the question we asked over a year ago when we started making Directly Affected. Now, we're going to keep telling that story—your story—as we connect the people and places impacted by Kinder Morgan's Trans Mountain pipeline and TransCanada's Energy East pipeline.

Here's a quick look at our road trip, where we'll be screening Directly Affected and travelling to capture more content as we follow the story East.

San Juan Islands, WA — June 9, 10, 11

Hope, BC — June 18

Calgary, AB — June 20

Regina, SK — June 23

Winnipeg, MB — June 24

Thunderbay, ON — June 25

North Bay, ON — June 28

Ottawa, ON — June 29-30

Montreal, QB — July 2

Saint John, NB — July 4

Halifax, NS — July 6

Sydney, NS — July 8

Toronto, ON — July 11

Edmonton, AB — July 21

And just like the National Energy Board's recent cross-country tour to meet those who are concerned about energy infrastructure, we want to meet you.

If you're someone with a story, or there is something else you'd like us to look at, please fill out this form on our NationBuilder site (Beta), or comment below.

What do you love about British Columbia's Fraser River, the Gulf Islands, and the Salish Sea? What are your concerns for the future of the Salish Sea region, the health of the B.C. economy and the impacts of climate change? The answers to these personal questions are fundamental to informing decisions about Kinder Morgan's proposed Trans Mountain expansion and are at the heart of "Directly Affected," a new documentary film produced by Vancouver filmmaker Zack Embree and Raincoast Conservation Foundation.

The proposed tripling of the Trans Mountain pipeline's capacity to 890,000 barrels (141,383,399 litres) of tar sands oil per day and consequent five-fold increase in tanker traffic would see more than 400 tankers laden with diluted bitumen travelling the Salish Sea every year.

Numerous risks are associated with Kinder Morgan's proposal that could adversely affect people and wildlife locally, regionally, and globally. These include health and safety concerns, pollution, habitat destruction from tar sands extraction, harm to birds, fish and mammals, the acceleration of global climate change, and the potential for chronic and catastrophic oil spills throughout B.C.'s land, rivers and oceans. These environmental impacts can have ensuing social, cultural and economic consequences. Communities throughout the Salish Sea have legitimate concerns about this proposal that are not being addressed.

It is important to note that beyond the risk of spills, the project will have a range of impacts, many of which cannot be mitigated. Kinder Morgan's own application clearly states that, "the potential effect of the increase in project-related marine vessel traffic is considered to be high magnitude, high probability and significant for southern resident killer whales." These iconic whales are critically endangered and whether they can remain viable, i.e. continue to exist with or without an oil spill, is a pivotal question Raincoast is trying to answer through a population viability analysis.

In January, after Bill-C38 weakened environmental legislation and restricted public participation in environmental reviews, the National Energy Board (NEB) opened applications for public participation in their review of the Trans Mountain expansion. However, participation was not encouraged. Applicants had to prove they were "directly affected" or demonstrate relevant knowledge and expertise of the issues while navigating an onerous online system. Discussion of climate change and the upstream impacts of tar sands development were strictly off limits.

While Raincoast supported local communities, individuals, and stakeholder groups with the application procedure, thousands still felt excluded from the NEB process. Exacerbating the public's growing alienation, the NEB decided against any cross examination by interveners, and subsequently permitted Kinder Morgan to leave hundreds of information requests effectively unanswered.

At the same time that we were witnessing the frustrations of citizens being shut out by the NEB, we saw an inspiring diversity of people motivated to stand up for their communities, lands, and waters. Hearing, witnessing, and sharing these frustrations gave us an idea; Ask people directly how they are affected, without restrictions, and give the conversation back to the public.

As the need to address climate change becomes ever more urgent, open public discussions regarding energy developments and hard questions about sustainability should be a priority, not sidestepped as if the tar sands are some untouchable sacred cow. Public participation should be celebrated as evidence of a functioning democracy, not derided as an inconvenience to multinational corporations and their shareholders.

The irony is that the attempted fast-tracking of a "streamlined" environmental assessment process has created significant and unintended blowback, leaving communities like Burnaby with little option but to literally stand in the way.

After voicing their opposition, local community members have been hit with a $5.6 million lawsuit by Kinder Morgan that Vancouver Sun columnist Pete McMartin has termed "an affront to free speech." Simon Fraser University professor and lawsuit defendant Lynne Quarmby has said, "the only world in which it is okay to continue building new infrastructure for fossil fuels with no consideration for the impacts of climate change is a world where we don't care about the future."

Kinder Morgan has just been granted an injunction against opponents who have been blocking crews from doing work in the Burnaby Mountain Conservation Area. Kinder Morgan claims the citizen protests have been interfering with survey and drilling work the company needs to complete for its submission to the NEB on the proposed Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

We encourage you to attend one of the upcoming Directly Affectedscreenings, and more importantly to consider how you are directly affected. This is your story, please help us tell it.

This article was co-authored by Ross Dixon, policy and program manager for Raincoast Conservation Foundation; a previous version ran in the Vancouver Sun. Raincoast Conservation Foundation helped present Directly Affected to audiences in 2014 and 2015.